Removable resilient foam block overshoes



April 19, 1960 M. w. BROWN 2,932,910

REMOVABLE RESILIENT FOAM BLOCK OVERSHOES Filed Jan. 27, 1959 INVENTOR Mabel W. Bro

United States Patent REMOVABLE RESILIENT FOAM BLOCK OVERSHOES Mabel W. Brown, Chelsea, Mass. Application January 27, 1959, Serial No. 789,383 1 Claim. (Cl. 36-45) This invention relates to-wearing apparel and more particularly to snow shoes for men, women, and children. It is an object of the present invention to provide snow shoes that can be readily worn upon any type of shoe, outer shoe, or storm boot, that will enable the wearer to walk upon deep snow without sinking into it.

A further object of the present invention is to provide snow shoes of the above type that are extremely light in weight, or substanially the same but slightly larger configuration of ordinary footwear, whereby such snow shoes may be comfortably worn by young and old people alike.

Other objects of the invention are to provide snow shoes bearing the above objects in mind which is of simple construction, has a minimum number of parts, is inexpensive to manufacture and elficient in operation.

For other objects and for a better understanding of the invention, referencemay be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a snow shoe made in accordance with one form of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the snow shoe shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse cross sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of a slightly modified form of construction; and

Figure 5 is an enlarged transverse cross sectional view taken along line 55 of Figure 4.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, and more particularly to Figures 1 to 3 thereof, a snow shoe made in accordance with one form of the present invention is shown to include a block 12 of resilient foam material, such as plastic or rubber foam, that has a side wall conforming generally to the outline of a foot, but of slightly larger size. This block 12 is completely encased within a flexible water impervious layer 14, such as molded plastic, so as to prevent the entry of moisture into the foam block 12 during use. This layer may be of any desired color, so as to enhance the appearance of the shoe and to enable various pairs of shoes to be readily distinguished.

A pair of two part straps 18, 20 are secured in longitudinally spaced apart relationship to one side of the block for securing the snow shoe to the ball and heel of the wearers foot. Each one of the two part straps may be provided with a buckle 22 or any other suitable means for securing the free end of the associated strap 18 adjustably thereto.

The opposite lower side of each snow shoe is provided with a pair of longitudinally spaced apart flat discs 16 of any desired wear resistant material, such as cork, leather, or the like. These discs 16 not only provide additional traction during use, but also take up a lot of the wear that might otherwise damage the outer layer 14.

With reference now to Figures 4 and 5 of the drawing, a slightly modified form of construction 30 is shown wherein the shoe similarly includes a block 32 of resilient foam material that is completely encased within a flexible water impervious outer layer 34. Adjustable straps 40, 42 are similarly secured in longitudinally spaced apart relationship to the upper side of the shoe for attachment to the foot of the wearer. However, in this embodiment, the traction means is in the form of a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart endless bands 38 of any desired material that completely encircle the shoe and insulate the outer layer 34 from wearing engagement with the outer shoe of the wearer and the surface upon which the shoes are in contact. ThCSO annular bands 38 may also be of any desired color so as to further enhance the appearance of the snow shoe.

While various changes may be made in the detail construction, it shall be understood that such changes shall be within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claim.

What I claim as new and desire to protect by Leters Patent of the United States is:

A removable resilient foam block overshoe comprising a block of resilient foam material conforming generally to the shape of the foot and adapted to underlie the full bottom thereof, a flexible water impervious plastic covering surrounding the foam rubber and enclosing the same in a watertight manner to prevent the entry of moisture into the foam block, front and rear two part straps having respectively their ends adhered to the top of the plastic covering and adapted to be joined with ane another over the heel and front of the foot, and endless traction bands encircling the top and bottom of said covering and extending transversely thereof and longitudinally spaced to underlie the pressure creating portions of the foot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,076,316 Beals Apr. 6, 1937 2,305,520 Ferrini Dec. 15, 1942 2,460,097 Maling I an. 25, 1949 2,627,676 Hack Feb. 10, 1953 2,663,097 Giese Dec. 22, 1953 2,685,141 Davenport Aug. 3, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 778,380 France Dec. 22,1934 

